Swan Song: Diana, My Sister was released in Britain after excerpts from the book dominated newspaper front pages for several days. The memoir quickly reached the top of Amazon’s bestseller list.
Spencer, who delivered a widely praised eulogy at Diana’s funeral in 1997, makes several claims about the royal family in the book. He alleges that then-Prince Charles sounded “giddily elated” when he spoke to him shortly after Diana’s death.
According to excerpts from the memoir, Spencer said Charles appeared extremely pleased following news of Diana’s death. He wrote that, looking back, he suspected Charles may have been thinking about how Diana’s death could allow him to marry Camilla Parker Bowles.
Buckingham Palace responded to the allegations, saying the King was mindful that grief between siblings can affect reason, judgment and memory.
Diana married Prince Charles in 1981 when she was 20. Their wedding was watched around the world and the couple had two sons, William and Harry.
Their marriage later deteriorated, with both sides becoming involved in years of media coverage and public disputes. They divorced in 1996.
A year earlier, Diana had spoken publicly about Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles, famously saying there were “three of us in this marriage”. Charles and Camilla married in 2005.
Spencer has described the memoir as an intimate, loving and honest account of his sister’s life. He said he wrote the book to set the record straight and because he considered it his duty as an eyewitness to history.
